Keeping Your Dog's Mouth Healthy

As a dog owner, you have the responsibility of keeping your dog’s mouth healthy. If you don’t, your dog will develop foul mouth odors as well as unattractive teeth. In addition, your pet’s overall health will suffer. Having a sore, unhealthy mouth makes it difficult for your pet to eat properly. Therefore, you need to take the time to learn how to properly care for your pet’s mouth and then, even more importantly, carry through with the procedures.

A Look at Doggie Dental Disorders

Just like humans, dogs need their teeth to be brushed. If they are not, they will begin forming plaque, which is a mixture of bacteria, saliva, and food particles. At first, plaque is soft and gooey. But, if left on the teeth, it hardens and turns brown in color. At this point, it is called tarter. As tartar builds up, your dog’s gums become infected and its teeth begin to loosen. As you might guess, this is very painful to the dog. To prevent this from happening, you should regularly brush your dog’s teeth while the plaque is still soft and easy to remove.

Brushing Your Dog’s Teeth

The first step in brushing your dog’s teeth is to establish a regular routine. Choose a time that is relaxed and convenient for both you and your dog. If you feel rushed or anxious, your dog will feel the same. Next, you need to gradually introduce your dog to the idea of tooth brushing. Some dogs will take to it right away, while others will resist.

When getting started with a tooth brushing routine, you should set the toothbrush aside at first and just introduce the toothpaste to your pet on your finger. A product such as Dentipet Toothpaste is an excellent choice because it cleans your pet’s teeth and has a tasty flavor your pet will enjoy. Complete this process in the same way you will once the toothbrush is added – hold onto your dog as if you are cuddling him and stroke the outside of his cheeks with your finger before sliding the toothpaste in.

After doing this a few times with your finger, you can introduce the toothbrush. Place a small amount of toothpaste on the brush and clean a couple of your dog’s teeth with a circular motion. Be sure to get the teeth as well as the gum line. After your dog becomes used to this brushing action, you can gradually add more teeth to the routine until you are finally brushing all of the dog’s mouth. This should take about 30 seconds on each side of the mouth. Be sure to concentrate on the outside of the teeth and on the back teeth because these areas tend to build up tartar the most.

Always perform the brushing action slowly and gently when brushing your dog’s teeth. Also, try to gauge your dog’s reaction to the brushing and stop before he becomes upset. You never want to stop after he begins resisting because that will teach him that fighting you off gets him out of his tooth brushing. When you do finish up for the day, however, be sure to provide your pet with plenty of praise for a job well done.